Lockdown: An Ode To The Clothes We Wear At Home

Articles Mindful Living

In this article: working around and preventing pandemic induced emotional impulse-shopping, aesthetic fashion therapy ideas to soothe lockdown frustration, pretty stay-at-home outfit inspo, India-based thrift store recommendations, informative snippets on Indian textile and traditional costume, the importance of moments of playful escapism for adults in lockdown, sustainable restyling, mindful consumerism and feel-good fashion.

It looks like the only outings for us – if very essential and unavailable via online means – will be grocery runs for the next few weeks. … Read Full

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Ethical Fashion, Mental Health and a Radically Compassionate Label: with Reena Rose Dass

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The fashion industry can be a toxic one to work in, what commonly comes to mind is the lives fast fashion garment workers in sweatshops; but the culture of exploitation often prevails as one goes higher up the chain. Fashion’s mental health problem touches the lives of students, interns, assistants, designers, those in high powered positions even. … Read Full

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Kantha – Embroidery from the cradle to the grave!

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We’ve all encountered a kantha – be it saree, dupatta, suit, cushion or blanket. But a little known fact that differentiate’s this eastern Indian tradition from several other embroidery crafts is that there lies a profound functionality behind it, for it was in it’s truest essence a craft tradition of the poor. Discarded textile scraps sewn together with a running stitch – the basic foundational block of needlework – to create something new. One of India’s oldest embroidery traditions, the … Read Full

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Deconstruction, Reconstruction: The Tale of Khesh Sarees

Articles Sareeing

We’ve all heard of recycling and upcycling, recreating new garments with the old. Following the same principle, there exists an eclectic, beautiful textured handloom textile that is literally a saree recreated by scraps of older sarees! The process is fascinating yet simple…

The warp is with new yarn and the weft is with strips of thin cloth obtained by tearing old sarees length wise. For non textile experts, this simply means that long, thin strips of cloth cut from old … Read Full

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14/100 – Maharani Series – Of Indira Devi, Marsala Lips & Kashmiri Sozni

Articles Sareeing

This look is inspired by a resplendent portrait of Maharani of Cooch Behar, Indira Devi – mother to Gayatri Devi. A passionate, fierce and unstoppable woman, with an immensely interesting life story narrated later in this post. AIn her portrait we find a glimmering tissue blouse, three tiered pearls and a sheer saree creating a classically royal look which was quite the favorite among the globe-trotting Maharanis of Cooch Behar. Bare face, dark lips and natural beauty are a quintessential … Read Full

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6/100 – Mystical Ajrak in Gajji Silk

Articles Sareeing

for the #desidrapesrainbow, this divine gajji silk could be equal parts madder burgundy as it is indigo as it is black but I still dream of ajrak whenever I think neel, indigo, the night sky, the stars, the universe.

A divine ajrak on gajji silk from @fabindianews, this textile indigenous to Kutch is a match made in heaven with the tediously, intensively, magically surreal … Read Full

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4/100 A Bohemian MulMul Rainforest

Articles Sareeing

 

A drape for the #cocktailrani series, and celebrates how the saree, as a drape and an ensemble, is having quite the fashionable moment on social media, with gorgeously inspiring ladies around the planet posting their stylish takes on how versatile and chic it can be.
Ever since I discovered Suta, I’m 100% convinced that nothing embodies and envelopes sensuality like handloom mulmul does (georgette? what georgette). The buttery, breathable softness this textile offers can NEVER compare to any … Read Full

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Ajrak Decadence – The Story – Saree 1/100

Articles Sareeing

Aina Mahal, Bhuj. A breathtaking picture of ruins in restoration, these stunningly hand carved trefoil lattices are one face of the palace complex that survived the ravages of the earthquake and represent rich intricate geometric patterns adorning the viewing galleries – a signature of islamic architecture of the time. These patterns, when observed closely, will resonate with a viewer familiar with Ajrak, and this indeed is one of the inspirations behind the motifs and print repeats of the traditional form … Read Full

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The Gamcha Saree: Woven Tales of Chic

Articles Sareeing

Everyone wants a piece of the whole gingham and checks hullaboo across runways, designers and department stores! Well, Indian Handlooms have been there and been doing that since a long time now, and what a cool, comfortable drape the gamcha check is!

Gamcha – a word often associated with towels – is a handloom textile woven in north eastern India. Thrown on the shoulder, wrapped around the head or waist, the cotton cloth with a mix of checks and stripes, … Read Full

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The Jean Project: Bling-it-on with Upcycling

Articles

 I own and have accumulated probably as many as thirty pairs of jeans, being that annoying girl that eats a lot but never gets fat, still wearing the same waist size from high school. And I also own as many mass fashion Forever 21, Zara, or H&M denims as any of you. Then, doesn’t that make me a hypocrite for all the talk of being sustainable, turning to handlooms and handcrafted, and so on? 

Lets face it, not all of … Read Full

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